Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independents 4 Change) | Oireachtas source

This is pretty clear and simple as far as I am concerned. The Irish people are proud of our history of neutrality and do not want that to change. It offers Ireland a unique place and voice internationally. It allows us to serve as neutral peacekeepers in conflict. It reflects our history as a former colony that rejects wars of aggression and domination. Poll after poll shows Irish people want no change in our neutrality. As of last year, two thirds of voters agreed with keeping neutrality and the triple lock. The initial rejections of the Nice and Lisbon treaties were dominated by fear that they would put Irish neutrality at risk from an expanded European military project. People do not want Irish men and women dying in foreign wars and the triple lock is a fundamental pillar stopping us from being dragged into them.

There has been a decades-long push by successive Governments to drag us closer and closer to US and NATO foreign policy. We see it in the shame that is the US use of Shannon Airport for its aggression, going back from now to America's wars in the Middle East. This is just another step in removing our history of resisting colonialism and empire. Ireland does not want any part in American foreign policy. Some 1 million civilians died in its illegal war in Iraq. More than 4.5 million people died and 38 million people were displaced in the Middle East as a result of the carnage the US released after 9/11. This information is according to the Watson Institute at Brown University. With the destruction of Libya, the terror raining down on Palestine over the past few weeks, and American bombs falling indiscriminately in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia, we do not want any part of it.

This move away from the international consent of the UN and towards the US and NATO also ignores the state our Defence Forces have been left in by successive Governments. There are long-standing problems with pay and conditions for service members. There are shortages of staff and resources. A recent survey by the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers shows that more than one third of officers believe there should be industrial action on pay and that nearly half of young officers would leave without remuneration being resolved. The general secretary of that organisation said last year that three successive rounds of pay talks have seen their members marginalised and excluded. Our Naval Service can only keep one or two ships on patrol at any given time. Our Defence Forces are overstretched, underpaid and under-resourced. Our service members are not even paid enough to carry out the duties now, let alone go to die in foreign wars.

We know that Ireland wants no part in foreign wars. There is an overwhelming majority in support of neutrality. The only way to protect that is by enshrining it in our Constitution. Any change to laws undermining our neutrality should be put to the people. I thank Sinn Féin for introducing this motion. I support it and I support the People Before Profit amendment.

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